Stunting vs. GDP per capita in Nigeria
Nigeria: Stunting vs. GDP per capita was 33.8% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Stunting vs. GDP per capita in Nigeria, 1990–2021
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2021, stunting vs. gdp per capita in Nigeria stood at 33.8%.
That represents a change of up 7.3% on the previous year and down 5.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, stunting vs. gdp per capita in Nigeria peaked at 48.7% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 31.5%, in 2020.
That places Nigeria 18th out of 97 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 10 years of available data.
Stunting vs. GDP per capita in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 48.7% | — |
| 1993 | 43.8% | -10.1% |
| 2003 | 42.5% | -3.0% |
| 2011 | 35.8% | -15.8% |
| 2014 | 33.6% | -6.1% |
| 2015 | 33.0% | -1.8% |
| 2016 | 43.6% | +32.1% |
| 2018 | 36.8% | -15.6% |
| 2020 | 31.5% | -14.4% |
| 2021 | 33.8% | +7.3% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 33.8% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 22.7%, 1.5× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 33.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 28.5%, 1.2× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 46.2% | 43.8% | 48.7% | 2 |
| 2000s | 42.5% | 42.5% | 42.5% | 1 |
| 2010s | 36.6% | 33.0% | 43.6% | 5 |
| 2020s | 32.6% | 31.5% | 33.8% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is stunting vs. gdp per capita in Nigeria?
- Stunting vs. gdp per capita in Nigeria was 33.8% in 2021, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest stunting vs. gdp per capita recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 48.7% in 1990.
- What is the lowest stunting vs. gdp per capita recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.5% in 2020.
- How does Nigeria rank for stunting vs. gdp per capita?
- Nigeria ranks 18th out of 97 countries with data for 2021.
- Is stunting vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Stunting vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Stunting measures the share of children younger than 5 years that are too short for their age. GDP per capita is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.